How does lightning form inside a thunderstorm?
Quick Answer
Lightning forms when electrical charges build up in storm clouds and the air suddenly breaks down as a conductor. The resulting discharge can heat air to about 30,000 °C, several times hotter than the Sun’s surface.
The Full Story
Inside a thunderstorm, collisions between ice particles and supercooled water separate electric charges. Positive and negative charges accumulate in different parts of the cloud and sometimes on the ground below. When the electric field becomes strong enough, the air ionizes and a lightning channel forms, allowing a huge electrical discharge. The flash can be cloud-to-ground, cloud-to-cloud, or within the cloud itself, and thunder is the sound produced by rapidly heated air expanding.
Key Facts
YouTube Angle
Suggested video title for this topic:
"Lightning is a giant electrical spark—big enough to heat air hotter than the Sun’s surface"